1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new system for safe guarding the fuel tank caps of automotive vehicles during refueling.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most automobiles which are currently manufactured have fuel tank filling inlets located behind access doors in the sides of the rear portions of the bodies of the vehicles. A filling inlet access door is typically oriented in an upright, generally vertical disposition and is rotatably mounted on the vehicle body by a hinge or a pair of hinges. A latch is usually provided on the door opposite the hinges, and normally requires a key in order for the access door to be opened. The neck of the fuel tank filling inlet is located in a cavity defined behind the access door and is accessible when the access door is opened. A fuel tank cap is used to seal the mouth of the filler neck and is removed only during refueling.
Conventional vehicles include a variety of different fuel tank filling inlet cap configurations, but virtually all fuel tank filling inlet caps include some type of cam or thread mechanism whereby the cap may be releasably secured to close the filling inlet by means of a rotational movement relative thereto. The cap may be disengaged by counter-rotation. Some fuel tank filling inlet caps employ a central hub which is externally threaded to cooperate with internal threads defined in the mouth of the filler inlet. Other types of filling inlet caps include a central hub with a pair of radially extending lugs that pass through radial cut-outs in a radial lip on the mouth of the filling inlet. The lip at the filling inlet mouth includes an interior ledge with a camming surface, so that the cap is pulled longitudinally into sealing engagement with the filling inlet mouth by the force of the lugs against the camming surface as the cap is rotated relative to the mouth. There are many other configurations of fuel tank inlet caps, but nearly all such caps employ a traverse end closure with some releasable fastening mechanism which may be secured to the mouth of the filling inlet by a rotational motion.
During refueling the fuel tank inlet cap must be removed so that the nozzle of a fuel hose may be inserted into the mouth of the filling inlet. Once the inlet cap is removed, the user normally places the cap on the hood or roof of the vehicle, or upon the housing for the fuel station pump. Not infrequently, the user forgets to replace the cap when refueling is completed. The cap then remains on the fuel station pump housing, or falls from the roof or hood of the vehicle as the vehicle is driven away. In either event the fuel cap is lost. This can lead to a dangerous condition with fuel spilling from the uncapped mouth of the tank inlet. At the very least, the owner of the vehicle must face the expense and inconvenience of replacing the filling inlet cap.
Various types of cap hangers have been devised to allow a fuel tank cap to be releasably secured about the filler neck or to the access door so as to prevent the cap from becoming lost if the user forgets to replace it on the filler inlet. However, all conventional systems of this type involve cap hangers or leashes which require excessive manipulation to engage the fuel tank cap therewith, or which are too easily damaged by the manipulation for engagement which is required.